The Unkown Help
by electricsymphony
Summary: One single movement, one single moment… could have changed everything. Had Harry fired his wand two feet from where he had originally… what could have happened? While the change is little, the consequences are more dangerous than we can imagine.
1. Chapter 1

_**The Unknown Help**_

Summary:

* * *

One single movement, one single moment… could have changed everything. Had Harry fired his wand two feet from where he had originally… what could have happened? While the change is little, the consequences are bigger than we can imagine. H/G, Eventual D/Hr. Ron/?

* * *

"If you're going to kill Harry, you'll have to kill us too!" Ron exclaimed, stepping in front of Harry. Hermione, looking as nervous as Ron had, had a determined look on her face as well as she stepped in front of Harry with Ron. Harry looked grateful but he knew what he had to do. He took his wand in his pocket and outstretched his palm, sweating. 

Harry stood there for a moment, frozen. His wand in his hands, palms outstretched and head shaking violently, he directed it towards the two men standing—bickering -- next to each other. Harry felt all blood rush up to his head, mind powered by the single waves of adrenaline seering through him. Pain shot through his scar like a spread of wildfire, and Snape stood, waiting. His wand pressed against Black's temple, smirking slightly as he did so. Harry sighed; sweat pouring off his forehead and Hermione breathing heavily from behind him, Ron never taking his eyes off Black. This was it. He had sworn to himself the next time he saw Black that man was done for… now it was time for him to fulfill his promise. "Expelliarmus!"

Black was blasted from his feet and slammed against the bed in the corner of the room. Hermione was wide-eyed, unable to speak and Ron was staring at the place where Black had once set his feet on. Snape smirked, grabbed Harry by the collar and pulled him closer. "You…" he managed to get out, a feeling of distaste radiating from his mouth… "Go up to the castle with Weasley and Granger. Contact the Headmaster with any means necessary… you understand?" He gestured towards the door, mouth twitching slightly and now that he had let go of Harry, he was holding Lupin. Lupin, who was now free of Snape's grasp, made his way over to Ron with a limp in his left foot. Ron was staring at him, eyes wide. "Step away from the Weasley boy, Lupin."

Harry moved closer to Remus, but Snape ordered him back. "Don't you dare play the hero, Potter. Let—it—go," he said, adding venom with each interval. Harry didn't look at Snape, peering down at Remus. Remus looked up at him, a smile on his lips. Snape pushed Lupin to the ground, dug into his back pocket and shook a vial of red liquid in front of his eyes. "Time to take it, Lupin."

"How do I know you didn't poison it?"

Snape stared at him. "You take it, you bloody werewolf, or you attack three students tonight. How will that look in your academic file?" He said, walking over with a smirk on his face. "Right… forgot for a moment. That's already on your academic file." Snape looked at Lupin, vial of potion in front of him, swinging the red liquid inside it. Harry glanced down, paused, and reached out to touch the vial. Snape snatched it back almost immediately, glaring daggers at Harry. "Do not think that you won't be receiving a detention for this… adventure, Mr. Potter. Do—not—push—me."

"Yes, Professor Snape."

"Stand back, Potter," he instructed as he slid the potion into the werewolf's mouth, the red liquid transferring from its vial into the forced open mouth of Remus Lupin, the defense teacher. Harry choked a bit, looked from Snape to Lupin and asked the unanswered question.

"What… is that, sir?"

"Ask Miss Granger, Potter. She seems to know everything, doesn't she?" Harry looked back at Hermione and Ron who were standing behind him, both looking at Snape and Lupin with hazed expressions on their face. Hermione looked up, her face concerned. "It's Wolfsbane, isn't it? It's a potion to keep a werewolf… safe." Ron looked up, startled and gathered himself from the chair and walked over to Harry, stopping just before the other men in the room. The rat next to him, Scabbers, nibbled at his hand and blood trickled out, covering his hand.

They were all silent for a moment, watching as the men ignored them. Each of them were waiting for the next move. Scabbers moved over slightly, fleeing out of Ron's grasp. Ron glanced up, startled, and watched as the rat ran from his hands. "No, Scabbers!" Ron pushed Hermione away from him, scowled at the bruise on his leg, and tried to hop after the rat. Scabbers running a few feet ahead of him, Snape looked from Ron to the rat and with an effortless flick of his wand the rat came to a skidding halt.

"Accio rat," he muttered and the rat came flying towards him, squirming in the palm of his hand. "Immobulus!" he whispered, and the rat stopped squirming immediately, leaving Ron to gape at Snape. Snape tossed the rat back at Ron and faced Lupin.

"Do you recognize that rat too, Severus?" Remus asked, a single brown hair swishing in his face as he got up off the ground into a kneeling position on the floor, panting and sweaty. "I did," he muttered, revealing a large gash on the side of his face when he turned to face the other side, glancing at Sirius. "I did not help Sirius into the castle; that I promise you." Then, he turned to Hermione and swallowed heavily, staring at her. "I certainly don't want Harry dead, Miss Granger. However, I can't nor will I deny that I am a werewolf."

"If you are quite done with your… speech… can we return to our conversation about the rat? You said I should recognize him… get to the point, Lupin," he snarled, his wand tipping into Remus' jaw. The three just sat, simply awestruck at the two in the room. Harry felt the heat rising on his head as the men continued to argue… but he felt as though this was something important and consequential. He had always found Scabbers to be annoying… but now… he felt differently, in an odd way. He felt as though he had some connection with the rat, but he couldn't place it.

"Severus, you mentioned the last time I… attacked a student… per say. I never attacked a student, you know that. Although, admittedly… what Sirius did was incredibly stupid--"

"Stupid!" Snape asked, outraged. "Stupid? Sirius Black told me that night that he would be waiting for me near the Whomping Willow to get ready for a Qudditch game, a bloody game! Told me we should find out who the better Beater is after all, he did. Never… as stupid as Sirius Black was… did I expect to be mauled by a werewolf once I got down there!"

"For the last time, Severus, you never got mauled! You know James saved you…" Remus replied in a sort of calming voice.

"Bloody good that was, wasn't it? Now I owe a moronic life debt to Potter and he's dead. You… you almost mauled me… don't talk to me about not bringing Black into the castle. You were always great friends with him, I know; you and Potter. I'm not stupid. I however, can't understand why you want to help the man who betrayed your best friends! Would you help me see that? Potter's not my favorite person… much less than that… but he's your best friend. I can't think of a better way to insult his memory than to be in cohorts with the man that ended it!" Snape's temple was throbbing and the trio was now a nice shade of pale, deeply resembling Malfoy. Harry looked appalled at all that was revealed, Hermione was looking thunder stricken and Ron was staring at the duo with wide eyes.

"I can think of a better way to insult his memory, Severus! To lead to Sirius go to Azkaban and let that rat on the loose!" Everyone was quiet. "Severus, can't you remember that night? There were four animals there—James, the stag that rescued you—Sirius, the black dog that stopped me from getting out… and me. Tell me, Severus, who was the other animal?" Remus asked, teeth bearing slightly.

"Pettigrew… he was the rat—Lupin, why--"

"How long ago did Peter 'die'?"

"Twelve years ago, Lupin--"

"Ron, how long has that rat been in your family?"

Ron looked completely taken aback at being asked a question, but replied, his voice sounding more confident than he felt. "Twelve years," he answered.

Suddenly, comprehension dawned on everyone in the room. Then, unexpectedly, a voice came from the bed. "I wasn't the secret keeper; Peter was. We switched because we thought Voldemort wouldn't be anticipating it. I never betrayed Lily and James, Snape, Peter did. Remus hasn't been in –cohorts—as you so nicely put it with me. I haven't seen Moony in twelve years and nor have I heard from him. How he knows I'm innocent--"

"Petrificus Totalus!" Harry shouted, Black frozen still on the bed. He turned his wand to Lupin, the rest of them silent. "It—makes sense—I saw Pettigrew on the map, didn't I? He's… a rat, isn't he?"

Lupin nodded, still calm. "Show me," Harry said, every word sounding more jumbled with the mass of sobs he was keeping in. He just wanted to let it out and to cry, but he couldn't. He remained calm, but he felt someone's hand on his shoulder. Realizing it was Hermione, he relaxed slightly, his wand still on Lupin. "Ron, give him your rat." Ron clearly looked at Harry as though he had gone insane, but he gave Harry the rat. Hermione was breathing steadily behind him and Ron stood next to Harry, Hermione on his other side. Snape took the rat from Harry's hand, set it on the table and jabbed the wand straight into it. Ron let out a tiny squeak of protest, but he watched in amazement as the rat slowly changed into a man.

"Good evening, Mr. Pettigrew," Lupin snarled. Snape looked as though he had swallowed a lemon. He couldn't even speak as Lupin spoke again, clear loathing present in his voice as he watched Pettigrew sink to the ground in despair. "Do you have anything to say in your defense or shall we just cart you away to Azkaban?" Peter was avoiding their glance, but he eventually looked towards Remus. Remus stared down at him, eyes narrowing and face cold. Peter shivered, pulled his hand back abruptly but Remus took it, digging his fingers into it. "Anything else to say, Peter?" Peter kept his head down, eyes of watery blue sinking in despair.

"He was going to kill me," Peter exclaimed, pointing to the limp man on the bed next to Snape. "He--" he tried to explain, but he stuttered. "I thought he was going to kill me! So I thought that maybe if I hid for a while—he couldn't find me!"

"That's the most rubbish lie I've ever heard, Peter!"

Peter swallowed, turned and faced the trio hidden behind the couch. "Harry—you wouldn't let them—of course you wouldn't—your father wouldn't have wanted them—wouldn't have wanted—and your mother—not to die…" He rattled on, sputtering out nonsense words, some of which didn't even sound like words—until Harry kicked him off his shoe, green eyes watering and blinking. Peter, realizing that Harry could no longer be of help moved to Ron who raised his eyebrow in confusion as Peter sauntered over to him. "Ron—I have been—a good rat—haven't I? Yes—I have—you won't let them—take me—kill me…" Ron looked down at the balding man, a flicker of disgust in his eyes.

"They'll do whatever the hell they wanted to do with you, Pettigrew!" His voice sounded confident and determined, but Harry knew that Ron was thinking the very opposite of how he was displaying his feelings. Snape and Remus were looking on in complete shock as Pettigrew looked his watery eyes towards Hermione, sitting on the bed, eyes widened with shock.

"Pettigrew… don't…"

"You, girl—I know you won't—let them—kill me—you can't let them kill the very man that—their best friend…"

"Best friend?" She asked, looking rather surprised that she had been speaking at all, "You betrayed them, didn't you? I doubt they'll want to be your best friend now, will they?" Although Hermione was saying this to Pettigrew, her face still showed the nervousness across her features, but she didn't falter. Harry looked on with a small sense of pride, but it diminished quickly when he saw Pettigrew grabbing her neck. Harry quickly grabbed his wand in self defense, but someone had beaten him to it. He had thought it had been Remus' voice, but it wasn't. Ron was staring straight at Pettigrew with a look of loathing and a wand pointed straight at him.

"Let-go-of-her," he hissed menacingly. A sharp beam of light erupted from Ron's wand and straight onto Peter's hands. He howled with pain, gripping his neck which now had blood spluttering out of it. Ron looked on in surprise, as he had no idea what the spell he had omitted could actually do. Remus growled at Peter but pointed his wand at him and muttered the counter curse. Harry looked at him with an amazed expression and Ron was shocked. Hermione looked like she wasn't breathing. "Why did you do that, Professor Lupin?" Ron asked, his eyes narrowed.

"If he's dead, we can't prove Sirius' innocence to the Wizengamot," Remus answered, securely binding a few ropes towards Pettigrew and chaining them to the wall. His eyes flashed dangerously when they laid upon Pettigrew, but he didn't lash out. Snape's eyes were full of hatred as he watched the scene, but he had a confused look upon his face. He turned to Lupin; the werewolf's back facing him, and stuck his wand straight into Remus' back. Remus hollered in pain and dropped the chain he was securing Peter with.

"I will let you leave this cabin alive on one condition, Lupin. Black is to remain unconscious and under security spells administered by myself and _you _will go into the forest right now, and I'll watch. _I_ will bring the children, Black and Pettigrew to the Dumbledore while you find a place to rest until morning. If I find one thing out of place when I return with Pomphrey tomorrow morning, mark my words Lupin, you'll be a dead man." There was a silence. Remus nodded, and backed out of the house with no sign of restraint. Snape turned around so fast to address the trio, Harry felt dizzy. "Weasley; you are to help finish tying Pettigrew's binds and help Potter to levitate him up the Headmaster's Office. Granger; follow behind me and make sure you see no sign of Lupin. Any sighting of him is to be reported immediately, understood?"

They all nodded, each of them still in a confused daze over tonight events. Once everyone was tied, secured and tested for Imperius Curse by Snape, they all followed the greasy-haired man out of the cabin. It was quiet, but the moonlight was rising from its previous sleep. Harry noticed Hermione looking hesitatingly around as if looking from something. It suddenly struck him why Snape had sent Lupin into the forest and forced the liquid down his throat. He wanted to get as far away from the woods as fast as he could. He had a feeling Snape felt the same way. The moon draped between two large trees, a silhouette in its place as it searched for new ground. The only light was coming from the moonlight reflected on a puddle of water at his feet. He splashed his foot into it by accident, but it still managed to get him wet. Cursing, he pulled his foot out of the muddy ground and tried to shake it off.

"Potter, stay focused," Snape told him, his voice cracking slightly.

There was an air of animosity now between Harry and Snape, but it went undetected by the other two. They were only a few steps towards the Great Hall when they heard a stunningly obvious howl from the back woods. Snape cursed and walked faster. Harry, Ron and Hermione didn't dare to object to that. Sirius was still in the stunning binds and was hanging from nothing right above Snape. The castle looked different in the dark, Harry decided. He had been out in the dark several times since he came to the school, but he'd never actually been able to stop and look at his surroundings. Now that he bothered to look, he noticed the very subtle differences he had been missing. It was fairly cold, and Harry knew it wasn't because of any late winter air. The Dementors had been swarming in since the beginning of the year. Ron and Hermione were lagging behind slightly, looking nervously at each other.

Snape directed them into the archway that led into the Great Hall. The clock by Harry's right chimed to indicate 12:00 a.m. It was midnight and they all knew who was in the forest at that moment. The creaking brown intimidating oak door swung open and a shadow stepped out, smiling. Albus Dumbledore stood in the archway, his nightclothes neat and tidy, his eyes twinkling as they always did and a small smile on his face. Snape grimaced and set the invisible Sirius on the floor. _"Desperatire!" _Harry knew that if it had been anyone else they would've screamed at the sight of a now visible Sirius Black, but Dumbledore only smiled. Who smiles when they find an invisible mass murderer on their floor?

"I thought it would be best to bring him to you first, Albus." There was a long pause. Dumbledore nodded slightly and pulled out his wand from a previously unseen pocket in his long nightclothes. He whispered something and motioned for the children to follow him. "Severus," he said, looking towards Snape now, "Where is Professor Lupin?"

"Where he should be at this time, Albus," Snape replied with a snarl.

"Yes," he countered, "Very well. You may retire to your dorm rooms now, Severus. That will be all."

"Er, sir?" Harry asked. Snape turned around, eyes narrowing as he cocked one eyebrow.

"Yes, Potter."

"Where is Pettigrew?"

Snape snapped his fingers and his hands now showed a small rat that seemed familiar. Scabbers… or Pettigrew, he supposed he should call him now. Snape conjured up a jar for Pettigrew and shoved him inside. "I'll leave him in my room until questioning yes, Albus?" Dumbledore nodded, only showing a flicker of emotion for half a second. Snape turned around and walked away, his robes billowing behind him. Harry gave him a retreating look, but Snape was gone. They were ushered into Dumbledore's office with Sirius lagging behind, still in binds. The password was, obviously, something to do with a muggle sweet Harry had never heard of, something called 'Cadbury.' Ron looked just as confused as Harry had, but Hermione smiled. His office had all kinds of knick-knacks in which there uses were a complete mystery. Although he knew many might consider them decorations, he was convinced that they had some kind of uses that only Dumbledore knew. He was seated in a satin chair that was directly next to Fawkes' cage, which was oddly empty.

"You three have had quite an adventure tonight, haven't you?"

"Sir, please believe that we haven't been doing anything destructive…" Hermione told him, but gradually her voice began to decline as she slumped a little further in her chair. Ron snorted and looked at Dumbledore with a nervous look.

"Well, we didn't do anything destructive on purpose. That counts for something… right?" Ron was smirking now, and Hermione looked ready to whack him on the side of the head. Harry let out a laugh and Dumbledore only reclined slightly in his large chair, but he failed to show any reaction to there oncoming excuses. "Professor?" Ron asked, making sure that Dumbledore had actually heard him. Still, there was no answer. Harry bit his lip and gripped the arm chair a little tighter. "What's going to happen to er…" Ron continued, and broke off, staring at Sirius. Harry gave him a pointed look and Hermione was looking at the door.

"What you found out tonight may very well be the truth. If it is, this can change everything. I'm… not entirely sure what we're going to do right now, but Severus is bringing us some Vertiserum so we can commence the questioning. At this point, the Ministry doesn't need to be alerted, as he is no real threat in this state." He paused, obviously contemplating something. The three sat in silence, Harry staring at Fawkes' empty cage.

"Professor?" Harry asked. "If I may—why is Fawkes' cage empty, sir?"

"Yes," Dumbledore offered, inhaling slowly. "That is of importance but not right now, Harry. Soon, Mr. Potter, I'll divulge that information. As for right now--"

"I have the potion, Headmaster. Would you like it administered now?" Snape had entered the room, very quietly Harry noted. Perhaps that's why he was so intimidating; he snuck around like a muggle secret agent… all the time. Dumbledore nodded and Snape stood forward, and poured the liquid down Black's throat. Harry examined the liquid closer and noticed it had a slight green tint in the light. He wasn't sure it was supposed to do that, but refrained from asking. It took a moment to begin to work, but Snape spoke before Harry could even think about voicing his concerns. "What is your full name?"

"Sirius Orion Black," he responded, a hazy glossy expression on his face. His eyes were blank and focused on the wall in front of him, never looking away. He was unable to blink, but his senses were still keen enough to feel his surroundings. His eyes were out of focus, even though his mind was still intact. He wasn't in control of what was said, however. It was like he was forced to watch himself divulge information he wasn't in control of voicing. Vertiserum was not only psychologically damaging, but physically painful as well. Although he couldn't outwardly show it, it was obvious the pain he was feeling, being forced to keep his emotions inside himself. Vertiserum was originally intended as a torture device, but David Lesser discovered you could administer a truth serum inside it and hit two birds with one stone. He had read that in some book he had to read for Potions over the summer.

"Did you betray Lily Evans Potter and James Potter by divulging the information of there whereabouts to the Dark Lord which led to their deaths in 1981?"

Silence.

"No," came the muffled response. Although Harry exhaled with relief at this answer, Snape continued without missing a beat.

"Do you know who did?"

"Yes," came the response once again.

This time, the question came from the previously silent Dumbledore. "Who was it?"

It seemed as though every question hanging in the air was relying on this answer. The answer to this question could decide the fate of not only Sirius Black but Remus Lupin and the future of the boy–who-lived. It had been determined that there ways to overthrow Vertiserum, but not by the one under it. If the questions were not decisive or specific, the answer could differ from the truth. The administered would also only tell the truth as far as he or she was aware. If he had been misinformed or didn't know the actual answer and believed something different, the answer he or she would give could very well be wrong. However, if a memory charm was used, the potion could see past the block in the memory and answer the truth, so it wouldn't matter. In this case, however, this was irrelevant. If Sirius Black was the murderer, even if he was memory charmed to believe he wasn't, they would learn the truth, right now. Harry felt the knot in his stomach grow tighter. He needed to know if Black was telling the truth originally. His entire future depended on it.

"Peter Aaron Pettigrew."

Everything came to a halt. Snape looked like he'd swallowed a lemon. Dumbledore only scrunched up his face a little bit, but other than that his reaction was non-existent. Harry knew at that moment everything would change. What he thought he knew was over, and something else had replaced it. For some reason, the next voice he heard was not Snape's but—Hermione?

"What happened to you that night the Potter's died?"

Sirius' eyes were still hazy, but he didn't answer right away. Harry flinched at the question, but he leaned in to hear the answer. "I was at my flat in Wiltshire, but when I heard the alarm I went to the Potters. Peter had already left and after I saw the bodies I went after him. I cornered him on Maple Street South, but he began to yell at me. He shouted at me for killing Lily and James, cut off his finger with a scowl and transformed into his animagus form and ran into the sewer. The authorities found me and I was sent to Azkaban."

Snape recovered from the initial question and asked, "Why were you laughing after Peter escaped?"

"I thought it was ironic that we switched Secret Keeper's to keep Voldemort away, and Peter—who was always afraid to say his name—was actually working for him. I never thought it would be possible for me to be outsmarted by Peter." Everyone was dead silent. The truth was out, and it was obvious there was no way he could've faked that. Snape administered the antidote quietly and pulled out the jar from his robes pocket. He smashed the glass and immobilized the rat. Dumbledore preformed the counter-curse and Peter was once again a human. After a long silencewhere Sirius was put back in binds and Peter was drugged by the potion, Snape began to the questioning.

"Did you betray James and Lilly Potter?"

"Yes."

It was official now, and if he had doubted it before, he knew better now.

"How long did you plan to murder them?"

"The initial thought was developed in the summer before my seventh year, but the plan was put in motion a few months after I graduated."

Harry felt like he wanted to throw up; his stomach was lurching. To now that such a man could exist—to do such a thing. Why had he wanted to betray his friends—who would do that? Would someone do that to him? How could he handle that? How could he protect his friends from someone like that? Was he ready to take on Voldemort knowing this? With all the questions in his head, he hadn't even noticed that Peter had been given the antidote. Snape looked murderous—thought Harry had no idea why—and Ron and Hermione were looking thunder stricken. Only then did the obvious annoying nagging question in Harry's mind surface. Wasn't Sirius his godfather?

After a moment to digest the news, Harry asked, "Eh… sir? Isn't Sirius my godfather?"

"Yes, Harry," Dumbledore answered, staring at Fawkes' empty cage. "He is."

"Severus, please alert the Ministry at once. Cornelius should be able to come for this news, no matter what time. If you could get the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement here as well, that would be well. Miss Granger, if you could alert Professor McGonagall, she should be in her quarters now, and bring her here. Mr. Weasley, it would be very beneficial if you could levitate Mr. Black to the Hospital Wing, we need a place for him to stay. I assume you know how, correct?"

"Yes, sir," Ron said, flipping his wand out. As soon as everyone had left, Dumbledore turned to Harry. "You asked me earlier why Fawkes' wasn't in his cage, and I'm going to answer you with the knowledge I can give you. He is my mail correspondent, and the reason he has been gone is complicated… and it has to do the night your parents died. Perhaps, something else happened that both Sirius and Peter were… uninformed of. In fact, the entire world was uninformed of the other participants that night…"

* * *

A/N: I know that wasn't really interesting, but it's the prologue. I can't really get anywhere without the prologue, so it had to be a little boring. I promise it'll get a hell of a lot more interesting than this though, I promise. 

Please tell me what you want for pairings. I'm really trying to decide who I want Hermione with, and if Harry/Ginny is going to happen. It was kind of just my default. The pairings up top are not permanent, just probabilities. Also, I currently have no one for Ron at the present time, so please give some suggestions.


	2. The Other Potter

_**The Other Potter**_

* * *

"Once again, you've all failed to do as he asked, but of course I never expected any more or less than such. There is someone interfering with our plans, and all we need is to eliminate the threat, but this is too much to ask for you morons." The other Death Eaters had always been petrified of the elite, who only now consisted of four. Lucius Malfoy had been the right hand man to Voldemort since the 1970's. Since that eventful night twelve years ago, Peter had secured his own spot in the elite. John Avery was one of the unknown elite, a previous spy for the Death Eaters in several different countries. He commanded a lot of respect, but he was never around. These were three of the remaining elite. Three of the others had been imprisoned. Rodulphus and Bellatrix Lestrange were imprisoned in Azkaban and unable to fill their duties as elite. The other was Barty Crouch Jr., who was also in Azkaban. None of the elite had yet to become deceased. The last remaining elite member still in obligation was Severus Snape, the Hogwarts spy. At this particular meeting, Malfoy was degrading the troops who were unable to find their target. Severus sat on Lucius' right. The professor cocked his head slightly and looked down at his shoes. "We have lost an important spy, an important ally…"

Severus sniffed in disapproval. He doubted Wormtail was that big an asset to their plans anyhow. However, he sat and soaked in the needed information. "Disappointing, disgusting, distasteful…" Lucius rattled on.

The use of alliteration made Severus cringe. He doubted Lucius had done it on purpose. "His name is—for the moment—unclear. His entire identity is a mystery to us—none of you have ever seen him before, yet…" Severus leaned back in his chair with a proud, smug look on his face. He knew that he wasn't going to obtain any new information this way, because he knew Malfoy wouldn't divulge any _important_ information to the new recruits. They still hadn't found out who the mysterious enemy was… and Severus had no intention of telling them. The Death Eaters were in no shape to deal with any threats right now, certainly not unidentified threats. Only Lucius and Avery were left to compensate for the lack of new troops. The new plan of the breakout in Azkaban was completely shattered now that this threat had come to light. Sure, Severus was a double agent… but he knew when to take action. Long years in this service had showed him a few things about the tricks of Lucius Malfoy. For one, they were never over when you thought they were.

He had been assigned to take Draco over the summer for a 'Potions Apprentice', but Severus knew the real reason. Malfoy had a plan of his own to hatch and he needed Draco as far away from Malfoy Manor as possible. Why? He had no clue, but he was determined to find out. Severus' participation in Wormtail's recent capture hadn't come to the ears of Malfoy yet. There was no reason to assume he was double crossing the organization, so the assumption was never made. He knew Lucius had a lot more on his mind without having to question his loyalty or lack thereof.

"Again, the only thing I see is a lack of commitment… can any of you do anything right?"

He could feel it in the air… things were about the change. Something was not right about this threat Albus was determined to avoid talking about. There was something about that night all those years ago that didn't make sense… a piece of the puzzle was missing, and he felt a gap in his mind when he thought about it. He knew, however, things were about to come to light. Albus couldn't keep it to himself for much longer; it was going to unfold all by itself. "Lucius?" Severus asked from across the table, his left eye twitching slightly. The older man turned in his seat to face Severus, a scowl deeply etched on his face. "Perhaps… the lack of commitment in our ranks can be… shall we say… subsided for the time being." He could feel Lucius' cold stare beating into him. "We have a more pressing situation at hand, yes?" Lucius sniffed in an awkward position, but agreed nonetheless. The meeting was dismissed after several more—reminders—from Lucius about the task.

"Follow me, Severus. There is something… I wish to share with you."

The walls of the dungeons in Malfoy Manor had been crafted by hand approximately a millennium ago. It was nearly as old as Hogwarts itself, and the second oldest residential manor still in use residing in Wizarding Europe, the oldest in Wizarding Britain. Snakes were carved into the walls, surrounded by etches of fire melted into them. Pieces of scattered wood littered the cell floors and broken edges of coal piled up in the corners. All the cells were empty, but all had one time served as torture chambers for opposing families and enemies over the past centuries. They passed millions of halls and passageways that all looked exactly the same. The trap-door had to be around here somewhere. He'd never seen the rest of the Malfoy chambers—only the ones used for meetings—and he figured he never would. They were far too vast and extraordinary to explore in one—or even two—lifetimes. He'd never seen anything so large—not even in the Hogwarts dungeons—but considering the size of the Manor upward, he figured he shouldn't be so surprised.

"After you, Severus."

He obliged in stepping into Lucius' office, but not before he examined the room. The bookshelves were still in organized sections—nothing was out of place. Every quill on his desk aligned itself next to another and all the bottles of ink were stacked on the shelf above the quills. Pieces of parchment were scattered amidst others on the desk, and a large box sat atop the highest shelf, a red linen cloth draped over it—

"We seem to have a leak in our system—and I have evidence leading me to believe you might have an inkling as to the traitor's identity—"

_**

* * *

Hogwarts School**_

_**June 7**__**th**__**, 1994**_

_**4:45 p.m.**_

* * *

"Sir? You wanted to see me--"

"Ah, Harry; do come in." Dumbledore was sitting in his large red oak chair, rubbing his hand against his forehead. Their conversation had been cut short last night because of trouble with Peter in Snape's chambers. Harry still hadn't figured out exactly who this person was who seemed to play an important—though undoubtedly silent—role in that night. Harry sat in the chair to the right of Fawkes' empty cage, his feet unintentionally tapping their own rhythm under the desk. Dumbledore reached towards Harry, and rested his hand right next to Harry's, on the top of a large leather-bound book. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the title, A History of the Dark Arts: 1900 Version Eleven, and raised his eyes in suspicion. Dumbledore spoke after the long silence, "I will not try to cut corners around you, Mr. Potter. You deserve to know the truth, and I will tell you thus. Charles James Forton-Potter was born in late February of 1882, or so the public was told. His birth records were never received, nor were they found in later years. He grew up in the newly-built Saint Mary's Orphanage—the same that would host Tom Riddle about fifty years later—and attended Hogwarts School at the age of eleven in 1893, sorted into Gryffindor, a year behind myself. He was often associated with the pureblood Potter family. George and Mary were the most popular of the notorious family and their three children attended Hogwarts at the same time as Charles: Nicholas, Regmont and Clara. Nicholas, their oldest, is your great-grandfather, Mr. Potter."

Harry took the pause as permission to speak. "I'm sorry sir, but I don't understand how events that happened then could affect a night only shy of a century later."

"That is quite the explanation Mr. Potter. As Charles' education furthered, he was bombarded with questions on who he was. He appeared out of nowhere as an infant, without birth records or any hint at parentage, and held a strong resemblance to the entire Potter family. He became a Prefect fifth year and Head Boy in his seventh year. He graduated with honors and planned to open a newspaper publication to rival the Daily Prophet with his close friend, Nicholas Potter and a Ravenclaw acquaintance, Joshua Kenson-Burch. However, several months after graduation in October of '99, he disappeared."

"Disappeared, sir?" Harry asked.

"Yes; he was never found again. His body was searched for by many local authorities for several years, but nothing was ever found. Joshua Burch died mysteriously four years later in 1903, although it was never determined what he died of. Nicholas married Jane Albana-Lysander and had two sons: Benjamin and Connor—your grandfather." As if waiting for Harry to respond, he paused, reached for the leather-bound book and handed it to Harry. Treading carefully now, he looked down at the selected page. It was an old parchment, and fairly hard to read.

Halfway down the page was a half black and white photo, though because it was a Wizarding, it was moving. It was a picture of a young boy—only slightly older than Harry's age, probably—who had messy black hair and sharp hazel eyes—a grin on his lips as he leaned back on a park bench. A thin smile then escaped his lips and he started to laugh. He was dressed in red-lined robes with a crimson vest underneath and a white collar shirt under that lined in gold. He wore a cap that had slid almost all the way off, emitting his dark messy hair to fly out. His trousers were simple and black, as opposed to his extravagant robes. All the colors were faded slightly, but still light enough to differentiate between them. A small script at the bottom of the picture read,

Charles (Charlie) Potter July 18th, 1896/Age 14 Potter Manor in Suffix, England

He glanced down to read the article that had faded over the years.

October 12th, 1899

Yesterday at dusk--around 7:45 p.m.—residential muggles reported a disturbance on Kindred Road in South Whales. All of the suspects were heavily questioned and Obliviated by the Ministry of Magic last night. The house was searched to find 18 year old Nicholas Potter in the ruins and heavily adamant on finding his companion—Charles (Charlie) Potter, of no relation. The premise was fully searched and several parties were sent out, but so far empty-handed. Nicholas has had his memory modified of the event and can't tell us anything about it. The last thing he remembers is sitting in his father's study with Charles, three hours before the attack. An attempted suicide is something to consider—but the body is nowhere to be found. The most logical explanation is that he has run off, obliviated his friend in hopes of remaining missing and set off into the woods. Further reports will be posted when we become aware of the situation.

David Mederfer, Ministry of Magic Unspeakable and Daily Prophet Reporter

Not too far down the page, was another article, this time four years later, by the same author.

September 24th, 1903

Unfortunately, local authorities have discussed the long debate of the life of Charles Potter and have decided to put it to a close. This man led a life of secrecy and was the source of heated debate by the public. Even before his tragic missing case four years ago—that has now been classified as death—he was a topic in the Ministry of Magic. He had no birth records, no assured previous history before the age of one and a strong resemblance to the Potters, whose name he bore as well. Although several mysteries will forever remain about Charles (Charlie) Potter, the kid with no past, and now with no future, he still remains a mystery in death. In other news concerning the late Charles Potter, his accomplice and friend Joshua Burch was killed tragically in his home last night, at the young age of 21.

"Perhaps you would now like me to explain the reason for this history lesson, yes?" Harry took his head out of the book and nodded fervently. Dumbledore turned his head in the right direction, behind Harry, and continued, "I believe someone else can describe it better for you." His heart was beating faster as he closed his eyes and turned to his right—not knowing what he expected to see. The uneasy feeling in his stomach tightened as he opened his eyes to see the boy—from the photograph—standing with the same identical grin he had on his face over a century ago when the photograph was taken. Harry had missed it at first, but Fawkes' sat on his shoulder, chirping.

"How… you're that Charles Potter kid—and you're dead and… over a hundred years ago, you died."

"Yes," Charlie responded, "… that's what they were led to believe."

"You mean… you never died? Where did you go if you never died—how did you live?"

"I didn't," was the only response he got back.

Harry stood up for a moment—debating his next move. "Are you—alive?" He reached out to touch Charlie's hand, slowly but cautiously. Upon feeling the solid presence of his skin, Harry pulled away abruptly. "A—memory?" Charlie shook his head, and Fawkes' moved from his left shoulder to the right. "How on earth have you not lived for a century--" Harry cut himself off with a silence as he thought about what he wanted to say. He opened his mouth, but closed it again with a scowl on his face. "What?" He asked now, the only word that would come out of him, his face now scrunching in confusion.

"Yes, it is fairly confusing. Eh—who are you?"

Harry opened his mouth to answer, with slight hesitation. He never answered though, as Snape came bursting through the room.

"Albus—we've had a murder." His back was stiff and straight, his eyes focused. Black hair swept in between his eyes and his robes billowed behind him. His gaze never lingered on Charlie—who was unknown to Snape thus far—but remained straight in front of him. Fawkes' was circling about at these words, silent only a moment before. One of the portraits on the wall gasped and turned to his neighbor, whispering. Harry felt a sense of dread and a large lump in his throat. Charlie was staring straight at the ground. Everything was silent.

"It's just as we thought—they were targets. As her parents--" he began, but never finished. He spoke again, "The Death Eaters were found outside their house last night but vanished even before the Ministry could arrive on the scene. Lucius must've organized it after the meeting yesterday with the lower recruits—I thought I would see it coming."

Dumbledore stood up now, still silent. "Yes, these things happen in war, Severus." His face was full of remorse but he took a deep breath as he turned toward a pointed looking wizard in blue robes on the wall. "Armando, I'm going to need you to go to your portrait in the common room Gryffindor tower, Minerva should be there accompanying two students. Ask her kindly to please escort--" he broke off momentarily, avoiding Harry's gaze, "Miss Granger to my office immediately."

* * *

A/N: So, just go with me here. I always thought it was kind of odd that Voldemort never wanted to eliminate Harry's support system-- I believe he knew of both the Weasleys and Hermione were a big part of his support system, so why did he never even try to eliminate them? So, in my world, the night that Peter escaped the Death Eaters were smart enough to try to kill of the competion-- to weaken Harry's support system-- the brains of the group. So, in my own little world of Harry Potter things that should've happened but didn't the Death Eaters tried to kill Hermione's parents but were sidetracked when they met Pettigrew's animagus form on the street. I just thought that woudl've been a pretty cool side-plot, yes? As Peter never escaped, the Death Eaters commenced their plan and the Granger's were eliminated. Anyway, I thought it would be a good plot, but that's just me. J.K.R. writes the books. Anyone else agree with me or am I completely crazy? Probably the second, but hey. Alright, there's my ideas for that. Anyway, on the topic of romance for this story I've decided on D/Hr and N/G (Neville/Ginny). For now, I'm going to leave Harry alone (the thought of the lone-boy who lived in actually quite intriuging and realistic to me). Ron's romantic subplot will happen and I know what will happen but it's a suprise. Don't ruin a suprise.

-S.S.M.


End file.
